


Falling for you

by Notabeautifullittlefool



Category: Carmilla (Web Series), Carmilla - All Media Types
Genre: AU- no supernatural, F/F, Fluff, SO MUCH FLUFF
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 11:06:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17160875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Notabeautifullittlefool/pseuds/Notabeautifullittlefool
Summary: This was a fic for my Carmilla secret santa, alexavier-taiga. Hope you like it!AU, no supernatural, where Carmilla lives in the little town of Silas, which is hosting its annual Christmas Festival. Laura Hollis comes to town, and Carmilla is intrigued.This is my first time writing for this fandom, so I hope I didn't kill the characterization too badly!





	Falling for you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AlexavierTaiga](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexavierTaiga/gifts).



Carmilla Karnstein had lived in the small town of Silas for practically her entire life. She knew everyone here, and they knew her, which made it much easier for her to avoid people because they all knew not to bother interacting with her. It usually didn’t end well for those who tried.

 

It wasn’t that she was cruel, or even particularly scary. Rather, she, her older brother, and  her older sister, Will and Mattie, had been adopted by a particularly fierce woman named Lilita Morgan, who just so happened to be the Mayor. She was feared and respected by everyone in town because she worked to make Silas a great town and had built up infrastructure over the years, but she was a particularly unpleasant person to be around. Her children were standoffish- partly by necessity, and partly by choice. Still, they never stopped wondering what it would be like for someone in the town not to fear them on name alone.

 

 

So for the past 17 years, Carmilla had her mother’s reputation hanging over her head. Everyone in town knew Lilita, so they preferred to keep their distance from her kids. Usually, the distance didn’t bother her; she had made her peace with it years ago, so why care about it when she couldn’t do anything?

 

Usually.

 

 But the end of the week was the town’s Christmas Festival- there would be food, a dance, cookie decorating competitions, any and everything Christmassy would be there. It was the biggest event of the year in Silas, and the entire town came out to celebrate. For Carmilla, it typically meant being stuck in some ridiculous dress her mother had picked out for her and opening the ball with her siblings. They, and their dance partners, always led the first dance, after which everyone else would join in.

 

But this, Carmilla had decided, would be her last year being paraded around as “The Mayor’s impressively accomplished youngest daughter.” She was 18 now, and as soon as school ended in the spring she was moving as far away as she could and not looking back.

 

She mentally reviewed her list of colleges that were at least 300 miles from Silas as she walked down Main Street, weaving and bobbing effortlessly through the crowds of shoppers pouring from every shop. She looked down at her phone, quickly skimming a text from Mattie, when she ended up on the ground, air rushing from her lungs. Rubbing her chest and breathing deeply, Carmilla searched for whoever had knocked her over, ready to give them a verbal lashing for not paying attention to their surroundings, but she was stunned into silence.

 

A girl about her age was offering her hand to help Carmilla up as she chattered on, apologizing for running into her. Carmilla’s mind kicked back on about halfway through the girl’s speech, catching that she was visiting family here for the holidays and she was so sorry for running into her but aren’t the decorations just beautiful and she’d gotten so caught up in admiring them that she walked right into her and well here they are!

 

Carmilla panicked when it looked like the girl was going to start speaking again. “Yeah, I got it, sweetheart, the overwhelming Christmas cheer temporarily robbed you of your ability to function like a human,” she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. She caught the slight flash of hurt on the other girl’s face, but it was immediately replaced with indignation.

 

“I apologized for knocking you down. You don’t have to be so rude about it! You’re not hurt, at worst just mildly inconvenienced.

 

“And my name is NOT sweetheart. It’s Laura Hollis,” the shorter girl replied. Carmilla was intrigued. Most people didn’t speak to her like that once they knew who her mother was, and it was honestly refreshing.

 

“Carmilla.” She raised her eyebrow and looked Laura up and down. She was certainly a few inches smaller, but otherwise she looked to be about the same age as her. Having someone new in town certainly had the potential to liven up this year’s Christmas Festival, which started at the end of the week.

 

Laura wrinkled her face in confusion. “No,” she said, speaking slightly slower than before, “my name is Laura.”

 

Carmilla bit back a smile and turned it into a smirk at the last second. “Yeah, creampuff, I got that. I was telling you mine.”

 

“Oh.” Laura looked surprised. “I thought- I mean- I should have figured that out, it’s a reasonable enough response.

 

“So since we’ve cleared up our traffic misunderstanding and met each other properly, do you live here? Because I’m trying to find my aunt’s house but I’m completely turned around. Her name is Sharon Ridges.” Laura looked up at Carmilla hopefully. She’d been wandering around Main Street for the last half hour, unable to figure out the directions her dad texted her and absolutely unwilling to admit it.

 

“You’re Sharon’s niece?!” Carmilla was surprised. She knew The Ridges fairly well, and Sharon had often mentioned her niece, who was also a senior. Sharon and her mom were, well not friends but friendly, and when Lilita had heard about her niece visiting, she insisted on hosting them for dinner as soon as she arrived. Carmilla was on her way home to change for the dinner when she ran into, quite literally, the guest of honor.

 

“Yeah! Do you know my aunt?” Laura asked. “Of course you do, small towns like this, everyone knows everyone I’m sure. Shouldn’t be too surprised you know of her!”

 

Carmilla made a split second decision.

 

“Yeah, no one can stay anonymous too long in this little hamlet.” Her words were dripping with sarcasm, and Laura wasn’t unaware of it. “You’ll go to the end of the street, take the second left, first right, and then keep going that direction until you find it.” She raised her eyebrow and nodded shortly at her. “I’m sure I’ll see you around, creampuff.” She put her earbuds back in and walked away. Tonight just got far more interesting than she originally expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laura smoothed the front of her blouse for the fifth time as she stood behind her aunt in front of the Mayor’s house. Suddenly, the door opened, and Laura was startled out of her reverie.

 

“Oh, Sharon, it’s so good to see you!” The woman at the door cooed as she drew Laura’s aunt into a hug. “And you must be Laura. I’m Lilita Morgan, the mayor of Silas. Come in, both of you!”

 

Laura and her aunt walked in to Lilita’s home, thanking her as they entered. Home might not be the best word for it, she thought as she wondered wide-eyed behind Lilita as she gave them a brief tour. It was more like a mansion. Or a castle. They had just finished walking through the library when they arrived in one of the sitting rooms and Lilita’s voice interrupted Laura’s thoughts.

 

“And this is my youngest, Carmilla Karnstein. Matska and William won’t be back until Friday, so they’ll be at the ball. Unfortunately, they couldn’t take the time off work any earlier.” Lilita gestured toward the girl sitting on the couch by the fireplace, reading one of the countless antique books that covered the walls in the library.

 

Laura froze.

 

“You?!”

 

Carmilla smirked at Laura’s reaction. “Me.”

 

Lilita watched the brief exchange. “Oh, I see you already know my daughter?”

 

Laura was still staring at Carmilla, frustration growing by the second. “Yes. We met earlier today. She gave me directions to my aunt’s house.”

 

“Wonderful. Carmilla, dear, why don’t you show our guest around town tomorrow. It would be so helpful to me,” Lilita requested. Carmilla knew that there was only one answer she could give that would placate her mother.

 

“Yes, mother,” she responded, winking at Laura as she did.

 

Oh this was so not how this holiday was supposed to go for Laura!

 

“Really, Madame Mayor, that’s not necessary. I’m sure Carmilla has plenty of other things to do that are far more important than showing me around.” Laura was desperate. She had no desire to spend any more time than necessary with this girl, and getting stuck with her as she played tour guide was the last thing she, or either of them she imagined, wanted.

 

“Nonsense, dear,” Lilita crooned. “My daughter would be quite happy to make sure you’re properly acquainted with Silas. It’s no trouble for her at all.”

 

Behind her, Carmilla had crossed her arms and rolled her eyes at her mother’s statement. Quite happy, indeed.

 

Laura understood from Lilita’s tone that the matter was settled, and she and Carmilla would be stuck together tomorrow. She smiled at Lilita and thanked her for her consideration in the matter. Pleased, Lilita Morgan ushered the whole party into the dining room for dinner.

 

Laura hung back for a moment and grabbed Carmilla’s arm, pulling her back with her.

 

“You knew this whole time?!” She hissed. “You couldn’t have said something earlier so I didn’t walk into this and get blindsided?”

 

Carmilla grinned. “And where would the fun in that be, sweetheart?” She walked into the dining room, leaving a fuming Laura behind.

 

 

 

 

Carmilla sat on a bench in front of the fountain in the middle of Main Street as she scrolled through her phone waiting for Laura to show up. She texted Mattie, begging her to come back earlier if possible and not leave her alone with their mother any more, but Mattie really couldn’t take the time off. She was a lawyer and had just made partner at her firm, so taking off any more time was impossible. Carmilla understood, but she wished she had at least one of her siblings there to take some of the focus off her. At least they would both be back in time for the Christmas Festival ball.

 

Carmilla looked up from her phone to see a familiar short blonde standing in front of her.

 

“Look, you really don’t have to do this. You can point out a few shops and things, and then we can go our separate ways, I won’t say anything.” She had barely had a chance to stand up before Laura started speaking.

 

Carmilla felt a flash of annoyance go through her at the words. She certainly didn’t want to spend her day showing the tourist around, but at least it gave her the opportunity to speak to someone who would actually talk to her, especially after knowing who her mother was.

 

“Look, cupcake.” She noted with mild satisfaction that Laura turned a light red at the nickname, seemingly stuck between annoyed and embarrassed. “My mother knows everyone in town, and if they see you wandering around by yourself, she’ll find out faster than you can blink. That puts my ass on the line, and I’m not willing to deal with that, not for you. So we can both suck it up and get this over with.”

 

She cocked her eyebrow at Laura and started down Main Street, motioning for Laura to follow.

 

Laura rolled her eyes and sighed. This was so not how she wanted to spend her holiday.

 

 

 

This was the last straw, Laura decided. She just wanted a cup of peppermint hot chocolate and a cookie, or three, but as soon as she walked in, who did she notice sitting curled up in the corner with a book? _Her._ Not even sugary drinks were safe in this town.

 

She groaned and steadfastly avoided looking in that direction as she walked up to the counter and placed her order.

 

“Large peppermint hot chocolate for Laura!”

 

Her eyes went wide as the barista called out her drink order for her to pick up. Without realizing it, her eyes shot over to Carmilla, praying she hadn’t heard. Her eyes met with dark ones and a smirk. No such luck.

 

She sighed, picking up her drink and cookies, and walked past to an empty table.

“What, no hello?” Carmilla called out as she walked by. She stopped, gritting her teeth, and took a long breath before turning around.

 

“Hello,” she said shortly, turning back around to head to her table. But as soon as she had, someone sat down at it. It was the last empty table in the shop. She took a deep breath and swallowed her pride.

 

“Need someplace to sit?” Carmilla smirked at Laura. “I won’t bite. Unless you ask,” she said, winking.

 

She kept standing, staring at Carmilla, as she weighed her options. On the one hand, she could just ask the girl at the counter to put her stuff in to-go containers and walk outside. But it’s snowing, and that’s really not appealing, even if her only other option is to share a table with Snark-milla, as she had taken to calling her.

 

“Fine. But only because it’s too cold to eat outside,” Laura huffed as she sat down.

Carmilla regarded her with something akin to amusement and settled back into her

book.

 

After a few minutes, Carmilla felt Laura’s eyes on her, unmoving. “What? Something on my face?” She asked, without looking up.

 

“No!” Laura responded immediately, embarrassed at having been caught staring. “No, your face is great!”

 

She realized what she said a full 5 seconds later when Carmilla grinned up at her. “Why creampuff, I didn’t know you were interested. All you had to do was say something.”

 

Laura’s face looked like a tomato. “No that’s not what I- I mean I’m not- you’re-“ she fumbled over her words. “I’m not interested! At all! Maybe you’re the one who’s interested!” She cursed herself for getting so tongue-tied. She wouldn’t hear the end of this anytime soon.

 

She was so caught up in her mental whirlwind she nearly missed Carmilla’s soft “Maybe I am,” as she returned her attention to her book.

 

Huh.

 

 

The rest of the week passed in much the same way. Laura would wander around town and stop in shops and the coffee shop (those were probably the best gingerbread cookies she’d ever had, and decided she had to go back and get more), and inevitably she ran into Carmilla. After a few awkward silences and snarky remarks—from both sides—they reached a sort of truce and found themselves walking together more often than not.

 

By the end of the week, they had exchanged numbers and were texting each other daily. Laura would even go so far as to call them good friends.

 

(Carmilla would too, but she’d never admit it.)

 

 

 

 

Friday night had finally come.

 

Carmilla stared down at the pink monstrosity her mother had laid out for her to wear. She didn’t care what the consequences were, she wasn’t wearing that thing anywhere that people could see her. In the back of her closet, hidden in a garment bag, was a black formal dress she had bought a few weeks ago, just in case this happened. She pulled it out, resigned to yet another Christmas ball, and got to work getting ready. The only bright spot was that Laura was attending the ball with her aunt. At least she had that to look forward to.

 

 

 

 

She took it back.

 

Carmilla glanced around at everyone in their formal dresses and tuxes, and her eyes immediately spotted Laura. She wore a light blue dress and her hair was pinned up, showing off her neck. Her makeup was soft and understated, and Carmilla forgot how to breathe.

 

She knew Laura was attractive- hell she’d known that the moment she ran into her. But this. This was on beauty on a different plane. Carmilla, with all her hours of reading, couldn’t come up with a suitable comparison. Laura surpassed them all.

 

How was she supposed to get through this when she looked like _that?_

 

Thankfully, her mother interrupted her thoughts, something Carmilla never thought would make her happy. It was time for her and her siblings to open the ball with the first dance.

 

“Go find a suitable young man to dance with,” Lilita commanded. She pointed out several potential choices, curling her lip at Carmilla’s dress. They’d fought before the ball, but she had been insistent and finally gotten her way, much to her mother’s dismay.

 

Carmilla barely heard her mother’s suggestions. She only had eyes for one person, and unthinking, she found herself walking straight towards her.

 

“Carm! Wow, you look amazing!” Laura took in her appearance and almost forgot how to breathe.

 

She blushed lightly, much to Laura’s surprise.

 

“So I know we didn’t exactly get off to the best start, but spending this week with you has been absolutely amazing. I finally got to let loose and be me around someone, and I honestly can’t remember that ever happening before.” She paused and looked up at Laura, who was smiling encouragingly. “My mom has this ridiculous tradition that her kids are supposed to have the first dance to ‘open’ the ball or whatever. And I was wondering…Be my partner, Laura?” Her voice grew soft at the end, and she fought every instinct to look away.

 

 Laura stepped forward and grabbed Carmilla’s hand, setting it gently on her waist as she held the other one. “I thought you’d never ask,” she whispered.

 

Suddenly, Carmilla looked alarmed. “Do you know how to waltz? I didn’t even ask!”

 

Laura gently rubbed her thumb back and forth on her shoulder when her other hand had settled. “I’m a little rusty, but I’ve got a great partner.”

 

The music softly played as they danced around the room, oblivious to everyone else there. Laura leaned in to whisper against Carmilla’s ear, “I’m so glad I ran into that day.”

 

“I am too. It was the best thing that’s happened to me.”

 

“I think you’ve secretly been falling for me ever since,” she laughed.

 

Carmilla tried to roll her eyes, but her beaming smile was proof of how little she meant it. “I already fell for you, creampuff. That first day when you knocked me down? I never stood a chance.”

 

Neither of their smiles diminished at any point that night as they danced and held each other close.


End file.
